Black Butler: Book of Pawns
by pocky-chan1217
Summary: There is a legend, a legend about the infamous Queen's Raven. She is the assassin who will judge whether or not a noble is loyal to the Queen, then kill them. So what happens when she judges Ciel as disloyal?
1. Prologue

The soft clap of heels echoed down the grand hall, the only sound besides the slight rustle of a silk dress. A black figure made her way down the hall, her face hidden with a black veil. She stopped at an oak door with brass handles. Two soldiers clad in armor stood guard at said door, and the black figure nodded at them. They silently opened the door to the quaint room. A familiar person was waiting in one of the chairs.

The walls were a soft baby blue color, with white curtains and a few portraits hanging here and there. The floor was wood with a rug the same shade as the walls. Two chairs and a table had been set up, and a vase full of flowers and a tray with cakes and scones were on the table. And sitting on one of the chairs was none other than the Queen Victoria herself.

The Queen looked up when the doors opened and smiled when she saw the black veiled figure. "You're early, miss Raven." The girl walked over and sat daintily in one of the chairs. While she sat, she said in a soft voice, "My carriage left earlier as to not be late."

Victoria smiled. "I'm not surprised. You do live so far away."

"Before we begin to idly chat, I'd like to know why you called me here." the Raven girl said.

"Ah, yes. I have called you here for a special mission…"

Victoria pulled out a photo from her dress pocket, and handed it to the veiled girl. The girl glanced around before slowly lifting her veil slightly. The photo showed a boy around the age of thirteen who had black hair with a blue tint to it, and sapphire eyes. Actually, it was one eye. The other was hidden beneath a black eyepatch, and it made the girl wonder what happened to his eye. Behind him was a tall butler who had pitch-black hair and odd red eyes.

"You have a heard of Ciel Phantomhive, correct?"

The girl nodded softly before handing the picture back to Queen Victoria and letting her veil fall back down.

"He was just on one of my missions for him, and I'm afraid he did not do exactly as I asked."

"How so?"

"There had been children missing at the time, and I sent him to find the kidnappers and retrieve the children."

The Queen paused for a moment, looking down at the tea in her cup.

"Instead, he burned the mansion they were in, killing all the children."

This made the veiled girl curl her hands into fists. "I take it you want me to… dispose of him, correct?"

When the queen nodded, the girl let her hands relax again. She stood up softly, which made the queen confused. "You're leaving already?" The girl bowed before the Queen and said, "I will make sure to come visit you again, my Queen. We will catch up on each other another time." Victoria gave her a soft smile and nodded for her to leave.

As the girl walked out to her carriage, she made sure no one was watching as she lifted her veil up and over her head. A boy was waiting in the carriage for her. "Another mission, My Lady?" A small smirk formed on the girl's lips.

"I think this one will be quite an interesting adventure."


	2. Chapter 1

Ciel looked out the window of his carriage, watching as the English countryside rolled in and out of view and resting his head in his hand. Sebastian was sitting opposite to him, content with just staring at the carriage wall. The young earl had been invited to a party at the Viscount Druitt's mansion, and unfortunately, the Queen insisted he go. He was dressed in his normal navy blue suit, and the eyepatch was tied over his left eye as usual. Ciel also looked absolutely miserable.

He could still remember the last time he saw Druitt, when it was the Jack the Ripper case and he had to go in a dress, with a corset. A PINK one, no doubt. Ciel really hoped he didn't have to speak with that creep too much this time.

When Sebastian noticed Ciel's expression got sourer, Sebastian said, "Are you thinking of that… _incident _that happened last time, my Lord?" Ciel glanced at him before looking back out the window, saying nothing. "I'm sure nothing will happen this night." Sebastian continued, a small smirk on his face. "We will see." Ciel replied.

The carriage pulled in front of the doors of the mansion, and Sebastian got out to open the door for Ciel. Before he could fully get out of the carriage, he noticed something moving out of the corner of his eye. A shadow shifted slightly and disappeared into the bushes. The earl stared for a minute, blinked, then shook his head. 'Must be a trick,' he thought to himself as he stepped onto the ground.

The two walked into the party, and noise filled the room. A small band was playing lively music as people danced gracefully with their partners. Others were chatting with each other or eating some of the snacks laid out for them on tables covered with white cloth. Everyone looked like they were enjoying themselves. Ciel and Sebastian walked off to the side, preferring just to watch silently. A few people approached him, but they soon left when they realized he obviously didn't want to be here. Nothing much happened until a blur of blonde ran straight into Ciel.

"CIEL~!" Lizzy Midford said as she hugged her fiance. Ciel made a small "ack!" sound before nearly stumbling over. "L-Lizzy, you're here too?" he said, and she nodded. "Of course! When I heard you were coming, I had to come too! Luckily, I got an invitation as well."

The band started to play a waltz, and Lizzy looked expectantly at Ciel. Ciel gave her a small smile before holding out his hand, which she gladly took. They made their way to the middle of the dancefloor, Ciel somehow managed not to trip over his own two feet. They danced until the end of the song, and Ciel bowed. Lizzy curtsied back, before a girl's pretty dress caught her eye. "Ooo~ that dress is so pretty!" she said. Ciel's fiance obviously wanted to go meet the girl, but she also didn't want to leave Ciel alone. The earl smirked slightly, and nodded his head at the girl, and Lizzy beamed. "Thank you, Ciel!" Lizzy gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before running off.

Ciel made his way back to his place at the wall, Sebastia there waiting for him. "You looked like you were enjoying yourself." The butler commented. "Yes, well, it is always nice to see Lizzy once in a while. Even though she can go a bit overboard." The earl replied.

"So, is the ball enjoyable so far?" Sebastian asked.

"It's okay," Ciel said, "Definitely better than the last ball he held here."

Sebastian smirked. "It was interesting to see you in that dress. And you really did look like a girl."

Ciel 'tsk'ed, a frown forming on his face. "I thought we agreed never to mention that again."

"Yes, but I couldn't help but mention it, seeing as the Viscount is making his way over here."

Ciel looked over, and couldn't help but notice that the creep was indeed coming their way. "Oh god help me," he muttered under his breath.

Apparently, God had answered his prayer. Because just before Viscount could say anything, a blur of silver flew past Ciel's face and a knife lodged itself into the wall next to him.


	3. Chapter 2

Screams sounded from the people around him, and soon the entire party was in chaos. In the midst of it, Ciel had grabbed the knife and pulled it out of the wall while Sebastian scouted the area, looking for the assassin who threw it. Ciel examined the marks on it carefully, and noticed something that definitely wasn't a good sign.

The was a legend about the infamous Queen's Raven. It was a girl, always a girl, who would assassinate any noble she found to be unworthy of their title and disloyal to the Queen. She went by many names. The Weigher of the Scales of Loyalty, the Noble Reaper, etcetera. She always had special knives she used, and they had the same exact marking on them. And on this knife was a raven, it's beak open and in its claws twin swords.

While everyone was running out of the building, Ciel turned to Sebastian. "Find the Raven. That's an order!" Sebastian smirked slightly. "Yes, my lord."

Sebastian quickly spotted the Raven in the rafters of the ballroom. She was hanging onto the wooden beam, a knife in one hand. Her dress was entirely black, and she was wearing a cloak with her face covered. But Sebastian knew, she would have the same mask on that all the other Raven's wore. A mask shaped like Raven's wings. Sebastian grabbed the kitchen knives he had taken just in case and threw them at the girl. The Raven quickly jumped to the ground, and stayed in a crouched position. She pulled out another knife as she ran at Sebastian, and swiped violently at his face. The butler had just a few seconds to block the attack. 'She's fast!' he thought.

While they were at a stalemate, Sebastian's knives locked with hers, Ciel had managed to pull out his gun. He shot at the girl who barely managed to dodge, the bullet nearly slicing off her hair. She pulled away quickly and ducked under Sebastian. At first, Ciel thought she was heading straight towards him. He nearly shot again before she veered off to one side and headed for the window. 'Damnit!' he thought.

The Raven had jumped onto the windowsill, and Ciel yelled, "STOP!" She looked back at him. Her eyes were acid green, and filled with hatred. She said darkly in French, "_Never mess with the Raven." _Ciel halted in his tracks, and the Raven jumped out of the window.

Sebastian ran over to Ciel's side. "Do you want me to go after her, young master?" he asked. Ciel kept staring out the window in which the Raven had disappeared. "No, no I'm sure we'll see her again."

"The only question I have is, what could've caused you to become so disloyal that the Raven would attack you so soon?"

Ciel thought about it for a moment, before it hit him. "The circus children. She must have saw the mansion burning, and marked it as an act of disloyalty. Damn.."

Sebastian looked down at Ciel. "Your cheek is bleeding."

Ciel didn't have time to reply before Sebastian had pulled out a small cloth and began to wipe away the blood. "She has incredibly good aim. I'm surprised she didn't hit you directly." Ciel frowned. "Yes, well, she didn't." The butler stood up again and put in the cloth back in his pocket. "I'm wondering why. It's quite unusual for the Raven to ever miss."

Ciel pondered that thought for a moment. He shook his head, as if that would help him understand. "Let's just go back to the mansion. It'll be safer there if she returns.."

The two of them had just made it back to the mansion, and it was almost midnight. Mey-Rin, Finnian, and Bardroy were waiting at the front door for them. When Ciel got out of the carriage, all three servants rushed over to him.

"Lord Ciel, you're right!"

"Thank the Lord, you're not hurt!"

"We heard about what happened at the party, yes!"

"Slow down, please," Ciel said, "Yes, I'm fine. But how did you know so fast?"

The three of them blinked then pointed at the door. "This scary girl knocked at the door and said she needed to see you. She told us about what happened!"

"And you just let her in?!" Ciel yelled, clearly angry.

"She had this really official-looking letter with her. She said it was from the Queen," Finnian answered.

Ciel glared at them before storming inside his house. He slammed the door open, and immediately saw the girl. She was standing perfectly still at the top of the staircase, looking up at the large painting of Ciel's parents. Her back was facing him, so all he could see was a tangled mess of black curls and the back of her black dress. Ciel began to walk up to the staircase when she spoke with a slight French accent, "Well, it looks like the earl Phantomhive made it back home safely."

She turned slowly to face him, and Ciel stopped in his tracks. When the servants said she looked scary, they weren't kidding. The lady looked like she could easily stab someone without a single regret. Her skin was extremely pale, a bright contrast to her raven-black hair. She was actually very short, maybe even shorter than Ciel. From this angle he couldn't tell, but that didn't retract from her cold and regal expression. Cold, yet smiling. Smiling in a way that made him shiver. Like she knew something he didn't.

The scar on her face only added to darkness of the lady. On her left cheek, her face was marred by three thin scars. Judging from his position, Ciel thought they might have come from a animal, a wild dog or cat maybe.

But that wasn't the feature that caught his eye. No, it was the girl's eyes, for they were the exact same as the Raven who attacked him just hours ago.

"What's the matter, Lord Phantomhive?" She said, making her way down the stairs. She stopped right in front of him and whispered, "Cat got the Guard Dog's tongue?"


	4. Chapter 3

"Excuse me, but who are you?" Sebastian said, since Ciel stayed silent. The green-eyed girl closed her eyes slowly, seeming annoyed with the butler. She turned to him with a dark expression on her face. "My name is Lady Claire Maria Benoit, daughter of Pierre Benoit, head of Benot Weaponry. I have been assigned to guard Ciel Phantomhive by her Majesty the Queen Victoria." She held out an official document of the queen and Ciel took it. "This is real." He looked over to Sebastian.

"Then why would the Queen want a tiny girl like you to protect Young Master from her own Raven?" Claire let out a small laugh. It echoed of the walls, making it sound much darker that it actually was. "Because the Raven you saw last night was a fake.""Ciel's visible eye widened, and almost yelled out "What?!" But he composed himself and said instead, "How do you know?" Claire turned to him again, smirking. "You still have the knife, don't you?" Ciel checked his pocket, and pulled out the knife. Claire took it front him and examined it carefully. "Yes… This is simply a cheap copy of what my father makes." Handing it back to the earl, she said, "My father is the one who makes the specialty knives the Raven uses. This isn't my father's company's craftsmanship, that's for sure."

"So… you know who the Raven is then?" Sebastian asked, taking his place by Ciel's side. Claire's expression hardened again. Something about Sebastian really displeased her. "No, I'm afraid not." she said coldly, "The knives get shipped to the Queen, where she passes them on to the Raven." Ciel frowned, and made a small 'tch.'

"Well, since a fake raven is trying to murder you, I'll be the one to personally guard you for the time being." As she began to walk down the staircase, Ciel said in a rather loud voice, "And how do I know you are capable of such an act? With the way you look, you hardly seem fit." The girl stopped in her tracks. A smirk formed on her mouth. "Is that a challenge, lord Phantomhive?" Ciel paused for a moment. His face hardened as he stated, "Yes."

Claire's smirk only widened. She turned to face him again, a challenging expression on her face. "Well then, Lord Ciel, I can only assume that you wish to fight?" Their eyes searched each other's for any weaknesses, one fatal flaw that could be used against them, as silence passed over them. Not a single person moved, breathed, or even looked away from the two nobles. Finally, Ciel spoke. "Yes. Tomorrow, three o'clock sharp. You know swordplay, correct?" Claire nodded, "Of course I do."

"Alright then. It's settle. We will have a swordfight tomorrow at 3 o'clock on the dot."

"Trust me. I won't be late."

Claire smoothed the wrinkles of her dress, her smirk still on her face. "It has been almost been an hour since I've come. I should really return to my own household." She looked up at Ciel. "It has been a pleasure to meet you, Lord Ciel."

Ciel said nothing as the lady opened the front doors and walked out to the carriage waiting there for her. The earl walked to the front door and watched as Claire got it, and the driver whipped the reigns of the horses. Right before the carriage started to move, Sebastian saw something - more like someone - sitting in the seat across from Claire. He could only make out a silhouette, and a pair of bright electric blue eyes.

"So, what do you think of the girl?" Sebastian asked Ciel afterwards. Ciel's expression hardened as he looked up at Sebastian.

"She's the Raven. I know it. And tomorrow, she's going down."


	5. Chapter 4

It was almost tomorrow, and Ciel hadn't gotten any sleep whatsoever. After the mysterious lady Benoit left, he had sent Sebastian to find any books about the Raven. So far, Sebastian had managed to get a few books from the London library. Ciel was reading one while the others were open and scattered on his desk, and he was jotting down notes.

"_The Queen's Raven is the queen Victoria's personal assassin, who is used to dispose of any nobles she finds to be disloyal to the queen. Very few Ravens have ever been caught by the disloyal nobles, but when she is, she takes her own poison dart and commits suicide before the noble can get any information. The most recent caught one was Elizabeth Mildor in 1878-"_

The book gave Ciel a list of all the Ravens ever caught. There were only five. The earl turned the page, uninterested.

_"__Though most information on the Raven is classified, a guard in the palace (who will remain unknown) gave out information on how the Raven was picked, before he was found murdered in his home. Investigators found the Raven's classic knife buried in his chest._

_3 Rules to become the Raven:_

The Raven is always female. No male is ever allowed to be the Raven.

She must a very athletic build, and is very fast.

She must be traded with throwing knives, poison darts, and swords. No guns are ever allowed.

_One time, a nobleman, otherwise known as Lord Westernfield managed to capture a photo of the Raven just before she killed him. The Lord had been dealing with illegal drug trafficking, and was plotting to overthrow the Queen. Turn the page to the picture._

Ciel turned the page, and sure enough, there was a large blurry photo of the Raven. She was dressed exactly like the one that tried to kill him, but he could tell it wasn't her. This girl had dark, most likely brown eyes, not acid green. Ciel noticed there were twin blades were in her hands. Ciel pulled out the one he grabbed at the party. The one in the picture and the one he held were an exact match. 'Had Claire been lying about the fact that it was fake?' he thought.

"_There have been many legends about the Raven, the most popular being the poem "Raven, Raven." This is excerpt that most people know:_

_"__Raven, Raven, always a maiden_

_Never shaken, she flies in the night_

_Looking for nobles, who're forsaken,_

_and give them quite a fright!"_

Ciel remembered singing this rhyme when he was little with Lizzy. How little did he know about the Raven at the time.

"_Children have also created a game based of the Queen's Raven called 'When the crow calls.' Two children would be picked, one as the Raven, the other as a disloyal noble. The unpicked children and the disloyal noble would have to walk around, sometimes, run, and the disloyal nobles would wink at a person, pretending to kill them. The Raven would have to figure out who the noble was, and when he or she (the game allows boys to be Ravens) would caw like a Raven and everyone would get into a circle. They would sing the 'Raven, Raven,' and the person chosen as the Raven would pointed to the disloyal noble at the end of the song."_

'I remember that game..' the noble thought to himself. The few times he ever went into the city when he was younger, he would see peasant children playing the game. They used to run around, one occasionally falling as if they were dead. Then the children would start to sing after a loud 'caw!' If only they knew the true story behind the game..

Just then, a knock sounded at the door. "Enter," Ciel said in a monotone voice. Sebastian opened the door quietly. "Did you find anything more about the Raven, my lord?"

Ciel sighed, exasperated, and sank back into his chair. "There's nothing but nonsense in these books. Only legends, and previous Ravens that happened to get caught."

"But you know the girl, this.. _Lady Benoit_, is the Raven?"

"Yes. Her eyes are exactly the same as the assassin who attacked at the party."

"Couldn't she have a sibling?"

Ciel stood up and started to pace. "But just think about it. It only took us a few hours to get back to the mansion, and she already known all about what happened at the party. And if she had come from the city, it would've taken her much longer to reach the mansion."

Sebastian thought about it for a moment. "That is quite true.. But we still know absolutely nothing on the girl herself. I've looked through the royal records, but I've never seen her before."

"We still have that book we took for the Yard, don't we?" Ciel asked. Sebastian walked over to the bookshelf, and quickly found the book. He brought it over to Ciel, and the earl searched for the B section. "Here she is, along with her parents, Pierre and Maria Benoit." Sebastian leaned over and started to read:

"_Claire Maria Benoit is the daughter of Pierre and Maria Benoit, the two owners of Benot Weaponry. She was born on December 30 in 1873 in Paris, France. Two years later, her family moved to London, England and they have lived there ever since. When she was six years old,-"_

Ciel closed the book before Sebastian could finish reading. "There's nothing else that's very important." The butler glanced at his lord, and noticed his expression. Sebastian stood up straight, deciding not to press the matter. "Besides that, shouldn't you be getting to bed by now?" The earl sighed. "I guess so. This will wait until tomorrow."

Sebastian opened the office door and Ciel walked out. The butler looked one last time at the book at the desk. "I wonder.." he said quietly. Shaking his head, Sebastian blew out the candle and shut the door.


	6. Chapter 5

Ciel was waiting at the door when Claire arrived. Sebastian and the other servants were waiting behind him silently, the head butler holding two swords for the sword fight. A small area had been cleared in the front yard, and chairs were set up for the servants and any guests of Claire's.

The earl was expecting the green-eyed girl to come out first, but instead, a stranger with blue eyes quietly opened the carriage door. Sebastian immediately recognized him as the one he had seen yesterday. The boy had faintly tanned skin, and unkept brown hair. He was dressed as mere page, though by the way he walked and held himself Sebastian could tell he was something more. He had an almost dark look to him, dark yet proper. Sebastian could tell he was not to annoy, or laze off during work with him around.

Another person exited, and at first it looked like Claire. But the Phantomhive soon realized it still wasn't her. This girl was another servant, a few inches taller than Claire. After stepping onto the ground, Ciel could almost feels the waves of sass rolling off of her. The way she immediately crossed her arms over her chest, the almost bored expression on her face. Oh yeah, she would be a tough one. She had dark red hair, much redder than Madam Red's had ever been. Her eyes were the same electric blue as the other servant's. Though her skin was paler and dotted with freckles, Ciel could tell that they were brother and sister.

_"__Demons?"_ Ciel whispered to Sebastian in French.

_"__No. They are human."_ Sebastian replied.

Only after the two servants had gotten out did Claire peeked her head through the door. Her skin looked paler in the bright afternoon light, almost like a ghost. Her raven-black hair was tied up in a high ponytail, and if Ciel had tea, he would've spit it out when he saw what Claire was wearing.

Her shoulders were completely uncovered by her dark green shirt, along with her arms except for the black gloves she was wearing. She wasn't wearing any skirt, but instead black tight pants tucked into her high boots. A belt was tied around her waist, and a sword was attached at the side. Her outfit reminded Ciel of Nina Hopkins and her incredibly short shorts.

"What in God's name are you wearing?!" Ciel exclaimed. "Good morning to you too, Phantomhive." Claire retorted, a smirk tugging at her lips.

Sebastian stepped up to them. "I don't believe we've met these two before." Claire looked back at her two servants. "This is Fae and Edmund. Edmund is my first footman, and Fae is my lady's maid. I wanted both of them to accompany me this time. Though, I think your butler Sebastian here saw Edmund in the carriage when I left yesterday."

The boy Edmund looked up at Sebastian. He was about the same height as the butler, and he looked at Sebastian with complete indifference. "Yes, I saw you too. Quite the interesting color of red you have for eyes. Are they natural?" Sebastian's eyes widened for a second before his lips formed into a smirk. "Yes, yes they are." Fae scoffed in the background. "Ye don't look very natural to me, I would say. He seems shifty… almost inhuman," she said in a heavy Scottish accent.

Ciel almost had a mental breakdown when she said that. Even Sebastian looked nervous. Meanwhile, Fae was right up in the demon's face. How she got there so fast, nobody knew. "Hey, Blackie, are ye a demon or somethin'?" "Manners, Fae," Edmund said next to her. "And proper English also." Fae looked annoyed, but she backed off. "Why don't ye shut yer gob, eh, bruder dearest?" Edmund was silent, but the way the siblings were looking at each other, Ciel could almost see the sparks flying between them.

Just then, Claire decided to cut through their silent face-off. "Now then, you two. Why don't you go have a seat while Ciel and I talk?" The siblings' dark expressions didn't change, but they walked over anyway.

When they left, Claire turned to Ciel. "Any rules I should know about now?"

"No maiming, and especially killing." Ciel said.

Claire laughed. "Good God, Lord Phantomhive, I'm not that cruel. I didn't know you thought so low of me."

Ciel shook his head. "Nevermind that, let's just get on with it."

Ciel and Claire stood back to back on the field. The Phantomhive and Benoit servants were sitting quietly in their seats, and Sebastian would be the referee for the match. "The match will end when the sword is knocked out of one opponents hand. There will be no maiming, or killing." he said.

As Claire pulled out the sword from her sheath, she said quietly to Ciel, "Don't be disappointed when I beat you." Ciel glared, but he knew she couldn't see him. "We'll see about that."

The area was silent for a few moments, before Ciel and Claire said together, "Allez!" They walked slowly ten steps ahead, before quickly turning to face each other. Claire lunged at him first, her sword coming up in a deadly arc. Ciel had just enough time to block it and stumbled back a few places. Shocked and almost angered by her rashness, the boy quickly aimed to jab at her sword. Claire quickly ducked, sliding to her knees. A few small locks of her hair were cut by Ciel's sword. "Was that really necessary?!" she said as she swiped at him. He deflected it and answered, "Yes!"

Claire glared at him and backed up a few feet. Ciel lunged at her again, bringing his sword down on hers hard. Their swords were locked in a stalemate. "I must say, you're pretty strong for a boy your age," Claire said, smirking. "And you're pretty strong for your height!" Ciel retorted. "Excuse me?!" the girl yelled. Ciel smirked.

"Ye dare make fun of Lady Claire-?!" Fae yelled from the sidelines, standing up and starting to walk toward them. Everyone else around her quickly sat her down again. "Please, don't interfere, Miss Fae," Sebastian said, as Ciel and Claire clashed in the background.

Just then, Claire saw an opening. Before Ciel had time to react, the lady had brought her sword up, taking his with it. It flew into the air and landed right near them. Everything was silent in that moment. Not a single person moved. That is, until Claire put her sword back in it's sheath and said, "I believe I've won."


	7. Chapter 6

It was just a month since Claire had been assigned to protect Ciel, and the boy was ready to strangle the girl. Not only was she incredibly cocky and arrogant, but she could also be extremely annoying. Ciel's already found her snooping in places she shouldn't be in, saying "I'm looking for places the Raven might get in!"

Though surprisingly, her servants weren't as bad. Fae was still as rude as ever, but she was actually nice to the other servants. She just didn't know when to shut her mouth. Edmund also turned out to be nice, but in a more formal manner. Though, he did have his moments, like whenever Mey-Rin broke the dishes. Or when Bardroy made the kitchen explode… again.

Ciel was currently sitting in his office alone, while Sebastian and Edmund fixed the kitchen. He had no idea where the hell Claire was, but at the moment, he really didn't want to go look for her. But speak of the devil, the raven-haired girl barged in just as the earl was taking a sip of his tea. "Honestly, Ciel," she'd started calling him that two weeks ago, "Why do you spend so much time alone? It must be dreadfully boring." Ciel shot her a glare. "Maybe for you, since you can't seem to shut up."

Claire pulled up a chair and sat on the opposite side of Ciel's desk. "Hmmmm.. I want to play a game." Ciel looked up from the letter he was reading. "What kind of game?" Claire put her elbows on the desk and rested her head in her hands. "How about~... Chess." Ciel smirked darkly.

Ciel and Claire were sitting opposite to one another, a chessboard laid out in front of them. Ciel would be the black pieces, Claire-white, which meant she would go first. "Do you play chess often?" she asked as she moved her first pawn. Ciel rested his head in his hand, moving his first piece. "Only when I have a good enough opponent?" Claire raised a brow and smirked. "Does that mean I am a good opponent?" Ciel looked up at her. "We will see."

"Tell me, why is the false Raven after you?" Claire asked, moving her knight a few spaces. "Because, Ciel began as he moved a piece to take her knight, "I believe it might've been caused by something I did a few months ago." Claire looked up at him.

"And that would be?"

"I'm not telling you."

Claire's expression turned sour, though she managed to captured Ciel's bishop. "Well, whatever it is. It must be quite the awful thing to do. Just how cruel _are _you, Ciel Phantomhive?"

"Your imagination could probably come up with something." Ciel said, taking another one of Claire's pawns.

Claire was silent for a few minutes as they played on. Ciel was winning by a longshot. "So, tell me a bit more about your two servants, Claire." The girl looked up at him with confused green eyes. "And why would you want to know?" The earl Phantomhive simply shrugged. "I'm simply curious. How did they come to your employment?"

Claire sighed, sitting back in her seat. "Fae and Edmund were abandoned when they were little. When I was seven, my mother Maria Benoit found them both on the side of the street. They're about the same age as me, so maybe she saw…" Claire paused for a moment. Her eyes clouded over, and her fingers briefly brushed the scar on her cheek. "She saw what I had to go through in their eyes doubled, maybe even tripled. So she took them in. Fae became my lady's maid and best friend, and Edmund became a serving boy at first."

"So how did _you _come by your servants, Ciel?" Claire asked.

"They were… _recruited_ by Sebastian."

"Recruited, you say? What were they before?"

"That's none of your business."

"Oh come now, Ciel," Claire said, resting her head in her hands, "I told you about my servants. Why don't you tell me about yours?"

Ciel sighed, and moved another piece. He was silent for a few minutes before, "Mey-Rin was once a scullery maid for another noble. The owner didn't want her any more after her eyesight turned so bad. Finnian was abandoned when he was little on the streets, and Bardroy was a previous soldier looking for work." He lied. Well, at least about two.

"Those are quite the interesting backstories." Claire said resting her hand in her hand. "Indeed they are," The earl replied, smirking slightly as his pawn took Claire's king, "Check."

Claire looked at the board and groaned. "Damn!" She flopped back in her seat, narrowing her eyes at Ciel. "You're good at this, Phantomhive." Ciel's smirk widened and he shrugged arrogantly. "You should never underestimated a pawn." Claire picked up the white Queen. "True, very true. But you know - The queen will always be the most powerful player."


	8. Chapter 7

Just then, Sebastian entered the room, carrying in a tray of afternoon tea. He noticed that Ciel had won the chess game, and smirked slightly. "I see my master can outdo you in a game of wits, not raw strength. That is one thing you obviously are better at." Ciel glared at the butler in black, but Claire only laughed. "Indeed," she said, "It seems I am no match to the brains of Lord Phantomhive."

Sebastian started to pour the tea in Ciel's cup and then handed it to him. The earl sniffed it and said, "Lavender?" "Correct, my lord," The butler answered. Next, he handed the steaming cup to Claire and cleaned up the chess set. Sebastian put out an elaborate tray with chocolates, scones, and lemon slices all placed neatly on it. "Today's afternoon tea consists of rose petal scones, chocolate-dipped strawberries, and lavender tea." Claire picked up on of the scones with a gloved hand and took a bite. "This is good," she said to herself, her eyes widening slightly. "This is really _good_." "Sebastian usually makes all the food." Ciel said. Claire took another bite of her scone. "Not really surprising, after hearing that giant explosion in the kitchen. How did you clean it in time for afternoon tea?"

"I had a little help from your footman." Sebastian answered.

The three of them sat in silence for the rest of the afternoon tea. That is, until a loud crash was heard from the main hall. Ciel looked up from his tea. "What was that?" Sebastian shrugged. "Mey-Rin probably broke the dishes again. I'll go check."

"I'll come too." Claire stood up and followed him out.

"I shall go as well." Ciel followed them out.

The trio reached the main hall in no time, and saw that the front doors were wide open, moving slightly with the breeze.. All their expressions turned stone serious. "Sebastian, go get the other servants. Search the entire mansion. That's an order." Sebastian bowed and quickly ran off in search of the others. "Stay close." Claire said. Her voice had turned from light and cocky, to dark and commanding.

The two nobles carefully walked down the staircase, searching everywhere someone might be hiding. Claire had one hand on her sword in case anything came out, Ciel- his gun. They reached the center of the room, and still nothing happened. "What the hell? There's nothing here." Claire said, slowly lowering her sword.

Then she looked up.

"DUCK, CIEL!" Her voice was so powerful and commanding, he did immediately as he was told. Bullets rained down on the two nobles, while Claire quickly ducked as well. Ciel's visible eye searched the room for anything to hide under, and found a table a few yards away. Saying nothing, he grabbed Claire's wrist and dragged her over. They quickly slid under the table as the bullets followed them.

Ciel knew who the gunner was without even having to look at her. It was the Raven. But.. how did she get in here so easily?! He was still pondered that thought when he saw Claire lift her sword up slightly. She looked ready to jump out from under the table any minute. "Alright, you stay here while I try to distract the Raven. That'll give the others enough time to show up at attack."

"You're going against the Raven with just a sword?! At least get a gun-"

"I have a no gun policy." Claire interrupted, before swinging out underneath the table.

"_I have a no gun policy."_

The words rang out in Ciel's memory. Didn't the book about the say that no guns were allowed if you were the Raven?

Those thoughts were jarred out of his head when he heard, the sound of a loud 'THUD!' Ciel looked up to see the pitch-black assassin only a few feet away from Claire. She too had a sword in her hand, and a knife in the other. "_Who are you_?" Claire asked in French. 'She's trying to negotiate?!' Ciel thought angrily. He clicked the safety on the gun he held.

"_I am the Raven."_ The assassin replied. She sounded very similar to Claire.

"_You are not the Raven. The Raven wouldn't have missed when she hit her target._"

"_Everyone makes mistakes."_

_"Who are you really?"_

_"The Raven."_

_"No, you're not-"_

_"How do you know?"_

With that, Claire screeched and lunged at the assassin. She quickly swiped her sword at the Raven's stomach, which the pitch-black girl quickly dodged. She pulled out another knife and stabbed at Claire. The two girls clashed, metal against metal. Claire with raw rage, the Raven with pure skill.

Just then, Ciel shot at the Raven. But his aim wasn't perfect. The bullet grazed Claire's shoulder, leaving a cut from which blood almost immediately poured out. The Raven had just enough time to duck and scoot towards the doors. "No-!" Claire yelled.

Gunshots rang out from the top of the staircase. Mey-Rin was standing there, holding two shotguns in her hands. The Raven turned back only a second to see who it was. Bardroy and Finnian came running right behind the maid, then Sebastian and Edmund. "My lord, are you hurt-?!" "I'm fine! Get the Raven!" Ciel yelled back.

He turned to point where the Raven was, but she was already gone. Not even a trace of her was left. Claire was standing off the one side, clutching her bleeding shoulder with a blank expression on her face. "Did the bullet hit you?" The earl asked, getting up from under the table. Claire shook her head. Her face was paler than usual. "It's only a scratch."

Everyone made their way down the staircase into a large group. "One thing I want to know is how the hell that assassin got in here. She couldn't just crash down the door- It's bolted shut." Ciel said, frowning slightly. "Perhaps she got in another way, and used the doors as a way to trick you."

"But you scanned the entire mansion, correct? You should know all the ways in."

"I _couldn't _scan the entire mansion, since you kept on pushing me out of places."

"You know ways around that stuff don't you?"

"Don't you dare blame this on me you little-"

"Wait," Sebastian interrupted, "Where's Miss Fae?"


	9. Chapter 8

p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Edmund's face immediately paled after Sebastian spoke, and he ran off quickly, yelling his sister's name. When Sebastian looked back, Claire had also taken off, only this time through the front doors. "Lady Benoit, it's not safe out there!" Finnian shouted. "I need to find Fae!" she yelled back, before turning a sharp right and disappearing./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;" /spanspan style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""For god's sake.." Ciel said, before walking quickly after the raven-haired girl. Sebastian followed behind, while the other servants looked for Edmund. It wasn't hard to track her. Every few feet, a few drops of blood were found in the grass. 'She lied about it being fine,' Ciel thought. "Can you sense her soul anywhere?" The earl said to his butler. "She's in the gardens. Fae's there too."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;" /spanspan style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Ciel veered off to the right and quickly walked to the gardens. The drops of blood seemed to be increasing as they got closer. "Turn right." Sebastian said. They turned at the next bush. "Keep going straight for a few more yards then we need to turn again." Ciel followed what he said. "Alright, both of them are up there." Of course they were. Even twenty yards away, he could see Claire's bush of curly black hair./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"The earl and butler made it there in only minutes. Claire was shaking Fae, who was passed out of the ground with a large red scratch and bruise on the side of her head. The girl didn't seem to even notice the blood running down her own arm. "Ciel-" Claire began to say. "You lied." The earl interrupted. The blackette looked at her arm and shook her head. "It's just bleeding."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""But you could get an infection."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""I'll have my doctor look at it later."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""I'll have Bardroy look at it right now."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Claire almost seemed angry about what he said. She stood up straight, and even though she was much shorter than Ciel and her height was definitely not that intimidating, her features made up for it with a dark and imposing expression. "Ciel Phantomhive, I was assigned by the Queen to protect /spanem style="line-height: 1.7em;"you,/emspan style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;" not myself. Any injury I get I can withstand. Now, I have a doctor back at my manor. I will have him look at it tonight. But first, we need to help Fae and also plan on what to do next with you. You are obviously not safe here anymore, so we need to move you to somewhere much safer. Failure on this, or any other assignment, is not an option for me."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;" /spanspan style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"And with that, she barked at Sebastian to take Fae back to the Phantomhive mansion, then stormed off angrily, muttering that she needed some time alone. Sebastian picked up the unconscious girl carefully when Claire disappeared and looked over to Ciel. "Shall we go, My Lord?" Ciel glared angrily at the direction Claire had walked away. "That girl obviously doesn't know how take orders from anyone besides herself and the Queen. Let's go."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"~~~/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"It was now dusk, and Claire still hadn't come back to the mansion. Fae had woken up hours early, and they found out where she had been. "I was out in the gardens for a short walk, when I heard something come up behind me and hit me on the head with something metal. When I woke up, I was here!" 'The Raven must have been the one to knock her out,' Ciel thought, 'She's much bolder than last time..'/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Ciel and Sebastian were in the earl's office, thinking about what they should do. Ciel couldn't stay in the mansion what with the Raven being able to get in so easily. He needed to go somewhere safer. The palace wasn't an option, since the Parliament would never allow it. He could possibly be moved into another nobles' mansion, but the only people he really knew were the Midfords and they were even easier to find than the Phantomhive mansion./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Ciel was looking out the window when he noticed a small black spot making her way through the gardens, up to the mansion. Claire was finally back from her time alone. The earl scowled slightly, before turning and walking out the door./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"He was at the staircase of the main hall when she opened the door. Her arm had stopped bleeding, and the girl had torn off a piece of white cloth and wrapped it around her arm. Claire's expression was serious, but she had a hint of a smile on her face. She only said this to Ciel before turning and making her way to the servants' quarters, "I have a plan. Meet me at your office at 8:00 p.m.."/span/p 


	10. Chapter 9

Ciel was already in the office when Claire arrived. Her arm had been bandaged properly with clean white linen this time, and the sleeve of her dress was no longer blood-soaked. "You're early." She said, walking up to her seat. "This _is_ my office." Sebastian pulled out the chair for her and she sat down. When Sebastian pushed the chair back in, she rested her elbows and put her head in her hands. "So. The plan."

"What is it that you have in mind?" Ciel asked, stirring the tea in his cup.

"Well, since you obviously aren't as safe as we automatically presumed, I've sent a letter to queen asking for you to be moved to another manor. One that is much safer, and more isolated than yours."

"And which manor would that be?" He asked before taking a sip of his tea.

"Mine."

Ciel choked, sputtering out the tea he was drinking. "What?!"

Claire closed her eyes and shrugged like it was completely normal. "The Benoit Manor is quite far in the English countryside, and in the middle of a forest. It would be the perfect place to hide you. Plus my servants have all been combat trained by my father personally. The Raven wouldn't have a chance to get in, unless they had inside help of course."

"There is no way I'm going to your mansion, Ms. _Benoit,_" Ciel said, glaring at her.

"I honestly don't know what you're fussing about. Would you rather stay here and risk being assassinated by a fake Raven? You must really have a death wish, Phantomhive." Claire smirked slightly, looking down at Ciel.

"And just how do I know I can trust you to protect me at your mansion?"

Claire chuckled darkly, leaning back in her chair. "Trust is a feeble thing, Lord Phantomhive. Broken easily, and can never be fully put back together. You should never trust someone you just met. You'll be let down easily."

"Then… Are you capable of protecting me, while I am in the Benoit Mansion?"

Claire smirked, "Now that is the better question. Yes, I am capable."

Ciel paused for a moment, then walked over to Sebastian. He started talking in quiet French, "_What would you recommend?"_

_"__We should wait until the letter from the Queen comes. If she says yes to you leaving, then unfortunately you can't say no."_

_"__I just want this Raven dead already. Why can't you go after her?"_

_"__It's not that simple, Ciel," _Claire interrupted, also speaking in French. Her eyes stared unblinking out the window. "_There are thousands of people that could possibly want you dead, not even counting the ones we might not know about. How would we know which one is the Raven?"_

_"__Tch… Sebastian could do it."_

_"__And just how would he be able to do it?"_

"..." Ciel didn't answer, and cursed himself on the inside for ever mentioning it. Claire looked at him curiously. Ciel could tell from her gaze she obviously knew the reason why Sebastian could, so why wasn't she saying anything? "Well, if you're not answering," Claire switched back to English this time, "I just have to assume you were wrong, and you just wanted a reason to get out of going to the Benoit Mansion." Claire stood and began walking to the door. She put her gloved hand on the doorknob and turned back to Ciel. "Good night, Ciel Phantomhive. And, expect me earlier in the morning tomorrow. We mustn't doddle too long." And with that, she opened the door and quietly slipped out of the room.

Ciel sighed and walked back to his desk. He sat down and put his head in his hand, an irritable expression on his face. "I swear that girl.."

"What do you think of her now, young master?"

"She's incredible annoying… and stubborn. Plus, whenever I find something that could link her to the Raven, she counters it with something that proves me wrong in seconds!"

"Like a bird taunting an angered dog. Flying within grasp of the dog's jaws, then swooping away, clawing at him in the process only to make him angrier."

Ciel glared at Sebastian. "I'm angry enough already."

"That's true. She does seem to enjoy aggravating you."

A small silence filled the room for a few moments. Ciel glared at the door Claire left in, and Sebastian looked quietly out the window. The sun had already gone down long ago, the night was pitch black outside. Stars glittered in the black sky, twinkling like the lights of a thousand candles. The butler could see the servants, both Phantomhive and Benoit, walking out to the carriage waiting for Claire and her servants. Fae and Edmund said goodbye to their friends, while Claire simply waved. The carriage drove off, and Mey-Rin, Finnian, and Bardroy entered the mansion once again.

"What's her soul like?"

Sebastian turned from the window, genuinely surprised. "What?"

"You heard what I said." Ciel answered.

The butler in black thought about it for moment. "It's a very complicated soul. It's like large cloud of darkness is surrounding it, but something pure is on the inside. Though, it's very deeply imbedded in the darkness, so it would be hard to get to."

"A hint of purity in a large cloud of darkness, huh?" Ciel rested his head in his hand. "If only we could use that against her."

"I'm afraid that'd be near impossible. You've seen what she's like on the outside. It's very similar to what's on the inside."

The earl sighed, getting up from his seat. "It's almost 11:00 p.m., time to go to rest." Ciel and Sebastian walked to the door, the butler opening it softly. Ciel walked out, while Sebastian blew out the candle, and the room was filled with darkness, and silence.


	11. Chapter 10

The morning air covered the Phantomhive mansion in an eery white mist, making the mansion disappear into thin air. Stars slowly flickered out of sight as the day was dawning. The rose bushes in the Phantomhive garden sparkled with the morning dew.

Ciel and Sebastian were waiting at window of the Main Hall. The earl had curtains pulled back, looking for the black carriage that always brought the raven-haired girl there in the morning. So far none had come, but that didn't matter to him. He didn't want to go in the first place.

Just as Ciel was about to close the curtain, the faint sound of horses trotting came from outside. He looked out again, and there it was - the black carriage. The butler and earl walked over to the front doors - Sebastian opening them - and stepped outside. Fae and Edmund exited the carriage first, but… Claire never came out. Confusion swept over the two of them.

"Where's Lady Claire?" Sebastian asked.

Fae perked up. "She had a lot of work to do, Mr. Sebastian, so she couldn't come. We'll be escorting you to the Benoit Mansion."

Ciel made a 'tch' sound. "How rude of her." Fae shot him a glare and clenched a fist as if to control herself, while Edmund replied with a dark undertone, "The Young Mistress happens to be a very busy individual when she's not at the Phantomhive mansion. It would be kinder not to insult her in such a matter, _Lord Phantomhive._ You only add to her burden."

The earl and footman stared at each other for a moment, a silent tension between them. That is - until Sebastian intervened, "We should be going. How far away is the manor?"

"About two hours time." Fae replied.

"Well, then, Young Master-" Sebastian motioned to the already open door to the carriage.

Ciel frowned, but entered the carriage anyway. The butler clad in black, Fae, and finally Edmund stepped in after them. And thus, the carriage set off.

Nobody spoke for a while. Fae started fiddling with her hands - a nervous habit perhaps - while Ciel and Edmund looked out the window. Sebastian sat there, not really doing anything, until he spoke up, "I never did get to ask you two - What did you do before you worked for The Benoits?" Fae and Edmund both turned their unnerving electric-blue eyes on him.

Fae began, "We were abandoned by our parents when we were little, so we didn't have long-lasting jobs. They were mainly small things - sweeping the streets, loading cargo onto ships."

Then Edmund cut in, "Mistress Maria, Claire's mother, found us when we were six years old. Since we were both around Claire's age, she let us be her servants. It was nice, having a real job for once. And with such a nice girl as Claire was when she was little."

Fae smiled softly, looking down at her hands. "She was so much happier before the accident…" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Accident?" Sebastian asked, "What accident?"

"Only she can tell." Edmund said, then looked out the window again. "We're here."

The Phantomhive and his butler looked out the window to see… nothing? There was no mansion standing before them. Just a large forest, covered in darkness.

Ciel glanced over at Fae to see her pull out a lantern and some matches. The lady's maid lit the match and put it inside the lantern. Edmund opened the door and motion for Sebastian to exit. The butler so and Ciel came next. Once everyone had left the carriage, it drove off, leaving them in the middle of nowhere.

"What's the meaning of this? Is Claire playing some practical joke-"

"Hold on, Lord Phantomhive." Fae walked up to the edge of the forest and started looking around for something.

"What is she doing?" The earl asked Sebastian. He only shrugged in response.

"I found it!" She said, and pointed to something.

When Ciel, Sebastian, and Edmund walked over, they could see a small dirt path winding through the forest. It was so small you could only go one at a time.

"It will only take us a few minutes to actually get to the mansion. Master Benoit happens to have a flare for mysterious paths and traps, so don't stray away from us."

"Is he paranoid or something?" Ciel muttered under his breath.

"Yes, and no." Edmund said, as if he heard Ciel perfectly, "He isn't THAT paranoid, but being the manager of a weapons company, he fears spies will try to steal future weapon ideas. He also happens to be a very flamboyant person."

"Thank god, Claire obviously didn't inherit that trait."

"You just don't know her well enough yet."

Edmund started walking, leaving Ciel and Sebastian there. "You mean she did inherit that?!" Sebastian's lips twitched as he almost laughed. The earl sighed and followed after the twins, leaving Sebastian to be the last person in line.

The walk to the mansion seemed to take forever in the darkness. The trees were so thick they blocked out the morning sun. Only with the light of Fae's lantern could they see where they were going. Not to mention, every once in a while, a bird would screeched and flap through the trees.

When Ciel actually looked up into the trees, he saw more than just a few birds. There were thousands in the trees, all watching them as they passed by. Species of all kinds were perched silently on the branches, occasionally flying to another one.

"Why are there so many birds?" Sebastian asked as he walked.

"The crest of the Benoit family has a bird on it, so we honour them by giving them a place to stay in the trees. They seem to like it there." Edmund answered.

"Lady Claire personally puts out birdseed for them in the morning, so they like her very much." Fae added, smiling as a bird swooped near them. "She likes to name them too. The one that just flew over us is Serenity. She's a Eurasian Magpie."

Fae continued to point out certain birds to Sebastian and Ciel, such as Victoria the skylark, Coal the crow, and Snowy the barn owl. These birds apparently had been around since Claire, Fae and Edmund were little, so some actually flew up to the twins and chirped or squawked happily. Snowy sat on Edmund's head, much to his annoyance, but the bird seemed very pleased with himself.

"It is just me or is that bird actually smiling…" Ciel whispered to Sebastian. Fae snickered quietly.

"Ah ha! We're here!" Fae announced to the group, and stopped abruptly. Edmund bumped into her, making Snowy squawk and fly off. Ciel and Sebastian leaned so they could see the Benoit mansion for themselves.

The place was incredible! The mansion spread out from one edge to the other of the forest, and the bricks were dark gray, and the slated roof green. There was a large courtyard, decorated with gardens of roses and cherry blossom trees and a small pond off to the side with ducks swimming in it. One of the trees near the pond had a swing on it Every room was lit with a candle, so all the windows were bright with light.

Fae and Edmund walked so they were standing on either side of the picturesque scene, and they bowed while smiling.

"Welcome to the Benoit Mansion."


	12. Chapter 11

The inside of the mansion was almost as extravagant as the outside. The main hall was bright with golden light, the walls painted a pale green with white columns rising to the ceiling. A few servants bustled here and there, dusting the vases and carrying buckets of laundry. A few glanced at Ciel and Sebastian, but simply went back to their chores, not really caring about the kid that looked like a nobleman pirate and a butler with red eyes.

A grand staircase lead to the second floor, with polished wood banisters and large steps. There oddly enough no portraits of the Benoit family, which confused Ciel. Most estates had a portrait of the current family at least somewhere in the main hall.

"This place is…" Sebastian started.

"Nice, isn't it?" Fae had a bit of a smug smirk on her face. "Claire should be in either her office or bedroom right now." She pointed up the staircase and made a right turn with her finger. "They're both on the second floor, to the right. Keep walking until you see the Do-Not-Disturb sign. That's her office. You can enter if you want. Nobody really listens to that sign, anyway. Three doors down is her bedroom. Now, if you'll excuse us." The lady's maid took Edmund's hand and led him to the door off to the left and disappeared around the corner.

Ciel and Sebastian looked at each other before ascending the staircase. They turned right as Fae said, and began to walk down the long winding hallway. They passed a few servants on the way, who stared and the two before quickly walking away. Some whispered quietly, and Sebastian only caught a few of their words.

"Is that… Phantomhive?... ring looks familiar.. mother's eyes too.."

"Strange… never seen him.."

"Red eyes… what's with... eyepatch?"

The two continued on as if they heard them, and came to a stop at the office door. Ciel knocked twice and said, "Claire, are you in there?" When no answer came, he figured that the girl must be in her bedroom. The earl sighed and started walking down the hall again. He counted how many doors they passed until they reached the third one. "Alright, she must be in here."

Ciel didn't bother knocking first, and just walked in like he owned the place. "Claire, we've arri-" he began.

Until a pillow came flying out of nowhere and hit him straight in the face.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN HERE?!" a loud voice shrieked. Ciel looked up to see Claire in nothing but her undergarments, trying to cover herself with one of the sheets on her bed. And she was very very red. A bright blush covered Ciel's face, and a hairbrush came flying near his head. He quickly ducked as Claire screeched, "GET OUT!" The poor Phantomhive ducked again and ran out of the room as more things were thrown at him. Sebastian shut the down behind him as the girl yelled curses at them in French.

Tick tock..

Tick tock..

The clock's hands seemed to move agonizingly slow as the minutes went by when Ciel and Sebastian were waiting for Claire. Both stood on opposite ends of the door, and said nothing to each other. Both demon and boy had a light pink blush of embarrassment on their faces from what they just witnessed. Not to mention fear of what Claire will do once she finishes dressing.

"We never speak of this again. Agreed?" Ciel said after a while.

"Agreed."

Just then, Claire opened the door- this time fully dressed. First, she glared holes into the skull of Sebastian then turned to Ciel. "Don't EVER come into my room unannounced, AGAIN." The boy cringed at her tone. "Alright, alright-" The girl huffed and blew a lock of hair out of her face, then turned and stormed off.

Ciel's eyebrows furrowed with confusion as he walked steadily after her. "Where are you going?" he asked. Claire glanced back at him before looking back to where she was going. "I'm working. Like you, I have to manage my business. Well, it's my father's company but I still have to work while he's overseas. Since I'm also the Lady of the household, I have to manage the servants too." Claire waved to a servant who said good morning to her cheerfully.

"Why do you keep so many servants?" The earl asked, trying to keep up with Claire's surprisingly fast strides.

"Because I'm not the only one living here. We usually have a lot of family members over, but since you're here this week, they decided to stay at their own manors." Claire stopped suddenly and Ciel bumped into her back. The girl turned to an older man dusting a nearby shelf. "Mister Gareth, would you please get guest rooms ready for tonight. The Earl Phantomhive and his butler have arrived." The man smiled and nodded softly. "Of course, Lady Claire." Claire said thank you as he walked off and then turned to walk down the staircase.

She picked up a list that was sitting on one of the tables the wall and started reading. "Damn.." she whispered. "I'm afraid I can't entertain you today, Ciel. Feel free to explore the mansion while you're here, but don't go into the sixth room to the left on the second floor." Her eyes say that whatever's in there isn't good. Ciel looked at Sebastian, and a silent agreement passed between them.

They would sneak into the the room tonight.


	13. Chapter 12

The sun was starting to go down, and everyone was going to bed. Sebastian had starting working in the kitchen with the cooks that day, who happened to be a small plump woman by the name of Joyce and a little blind girl Rosalind. Joyce had thin brown hair with a streak of gray tied back into a bun and warm brown eyes. The girl Rosalind, who commonly went by Rosa, had pale blonde hair cut so it was a bob and milky blue eyes.

Joyce was a incredibly kind person, but she didn't show it like most people would. She had a loud voice, and even though she complimented Sebastian on his ability to cook, it sounded like she was yelling at him.

Meanwhile, Rosa was incredibly soft spoken and shy. Well, shy to everyone except Joyce. Her face lit up whenever Joyce asked her to find anything, which she quickly ran off to do. Even with her blindness, she could find her way easily around the kitchen.  
~~~

_At one moment, Joyce le the girl up to Sebastian. "Go on. Ask him your question." She gave the blind girl a gentle push in his direction. Rosa had a light blush of shyness on her face, and asked softly, "C-Can I see you?"_

_Sebastian looked at her with a confused expression. "What do you mean?"_

_"__Kneel down p-please."_

_Sebastian did has he was told, and Rosa raised her hand. She reached out until she found Sebastian's cheek. Her milky eyes looked just above his head as she felt around his face with her hands. 'So this is what she meant...' Sebastian thought, a little bit uncomfortable._

_"__You seem very handsome. I bet a lot of girls like you." the blonde girl commented._

_Sebastian smirked slightly and stood up again. Rosa smiled before running off to do her work again._

_"__She's a cute girl, isn't she?" Joyce said, her voice soft for once, as she washed the dishes with Sebastian. Sebastian looked over at Rosa, who was diligently scrubbed a dish nearby. 'She does seem very sweet. How did she become blind?"_

_"__Poor dear was born that way. Her parents couldn't afford to take care of her, so Claire took her in. She used to get terribly sick when she was younger."_

_The cook and butler watched as Rosa felt around for the dish stack, until Joyce took her hand and placed it on the stack. "Thank you, Miss Joyce," the girl said, putting the dish on the dish stack and grabbed another one._

_"__Claire and her mother seem to have a soft spot for poor children." Sebastian commented._

_"__That's quite true," Joyce replied, "Mistress Maria was always such a nice woman. She was always very gentle and caring, and Lady Claire was always at her side. When the Young Lady was younger, she once went up to me and said, 'Miss Joyce, Miss Joyce, I want to be just like Momma when I grow up!'" The cook laughed at the memory, "She was always so cute when she was little!"_

_Since they were on the subject of Claire's past, Sebastian thought it was he perfect time to find out more about her. "Can you tell me how she got her scar?"_

_Joyce's face immediately fell, and she started scrubbing the dishes slower than usual. "Only the Lady Claire can tell." Sebastian frowned. What was with everyone and Claire's scar?_

_"__Then can you tell me how Mistress Maria died?"_

_The cook was silent for a few moments while she scrubbing the dishes. "Mistress Maria was off on a mission to France. Nobody knew why she went. Personal matters, she told us. When she came back, she was terribly ill. She was bedridden for days. Lady Claire was stubborn enough to take charge of every aspect of her care. Finally, the day she died, she called for Lady Claire to see her alone. When Lady Claire came back out, the Mistress was dead, and her daughter was never the same."_

_The rest of the time, Joyce said little or nothing to Sebastian. Once in a while, she would look out the window, her eyes seeming far away. The butler decided not to push anymore questions after that._

While the butler working in the kitchen, Ciel decided to wander around the mansion while waiting for the sun to set so he could get to work. Occasionally he saw Claire, but never for more than a few seconds because she was so busy. The girl only stopped once in a while to check on things. The only time she stopped for a good long while was when a servant came up to her and ask her to examine the latest gun model they were making in the factory.

_One time, when he was walking aimlessly through the gardens, he came across Fae and Edmund discussing something. Quickly hiding behind a bush, he listened in on their conversation:_

_"__This isn't doing well.." Fae said remorsefully._

_"__I know. If we don't stop it soon then.." Edmund started._

_"__Lady Claire would be furious."_

_"__We need to do something now. Do you think we should talk it over with the Lady?"_

_"__Yes, yes we should. They have to die eventually."_

_Ciel couldn't believe the luck he had. This was prove that Claire really was plotting to kill him, and she was the Raven after all! Well, she might not, but with the acid green eyes and dark attitude at first he could only assumed. The boy was too busy with his own thoughts he barely heard the rest of the twins conversation…_

_"__If we don't kill these stupid insects that keep eating our flowers then I don't know what will happen!" Fae said angrily, swiping at the bush. A bunch of caterpillars fell to the ground and scurried away._

_"__Do we have any bug killer in the storage room?" The boy sibling asked._

_"__I think so. Let's go find out." And with that, the two of them walked back to the mansion._

_Damn! They weren't talking about him at all! Just these stupid bugs on their stupid flowers. Ciel groaned on the inside. He was so close to proving Claire was the Raven, and it slipped through his grasp yet again._

The sun was now fully down, Ciel was trying to find Sebastian in the midst of all the servants heading out. He finally saw the butler in black talking to an older plump woman and a girl with milky blue eyes. "Sebastian!" he whisper-yelled. The red-eyed man looked over and excused himself from the two cooks. "Are you ready?" Ciel asked.

"I'm afraid I can't seem to go tonight." Sebastian said, glancing at the servants passing by.

"What- Why?"

"The other servants would notice. If I left the room in the middle of the night, they would hear. Especially _those three_," The butler motioned to the little blind girl and the twins. "You already know how good the twins' hearing is, and Rosalind happens to have very good hearing as well."

"Tch… Fine. I'll go by myself." Ciel said. Sebastian nodded before they began to head upstairs.

They both happened to notice Claire walking by. She still had a bunch of paperwork in her hands, and she was reading off the list carefully. "Oh, good night, Earl Phantomhive, Sebastian," she said, glancing up from her paperwork before walking back to her bedroom. The two of them blinked before saying, "Good night?" "Anyway, let's go," Ciel said as he made his way down the other hallway.

Sebastian helped Ciel get changed into his night clothes and tucked him into bed. "Good night young Master." He walked over to the doorway where the candelabra was, and blew it out, leaving the room in darkness.

Meanwhile, Ciel lay wide away, his blue eyes staring in the darkness, and waited.


	14. Chapter 13

Ciel waited until the clock struck twelve times before slowly getting out of bed. He managed to change into his regular clothes, and then he lit a small candle. The door was luckily unlocked, so he quietly slipping out and shut the door. The hallway was dark, dark enough so that he couldn't see anything four feet in front of him. But that wouldn't stop the earl.

He counted the doors until he reached the one he needed. Grabbing the doorknob, he tried to open it. It was locked. Ciel cursed under his breath. but then he noticed a rug in front of the door. 'Could it be…?' he thought to himself. Pulling the rug up, he found a small key, just big enough that it would fit in the lock. He smirked in spite of himself.

The door opened with a slight creak when it was unlocked. A blast of dust hit the boy in the face and he started coughing softly. Ciel held his candle a bit higher to see better.

The room looked like it hadn't been used in years. The tables were covered with layers of dust, and white sheets were draped over the furniture. The mirror had big black spots on it, and the vase held long dead roses in it. Cobwebs covered the moth-eaten curtains and walls. It was incredibly frightening to look at.

But that didn't stop Ciel. He entered the room carefully, trying not to step on any loose floorboards. His blue eye searched the place for anything useful. A book, or letter, something that might tell him more about who Claire really was. He walked over to the vanity set, and noticed a dust-covered book on the plush chair. Ciel blew away the dust, and the title of the book read: "Maria's Scrapbook."

'So Claire's mother has a scrapbook…' Ciel thought. The earl sat down in the chair, and started to flip through the pages. The first page showed a picture of the family when Claire was little, and Ciel finally got to see what he mother and father looked like.

The Phantomhive now knew where Claire got her looks. She was almost an exact copy of her mother, with the same black mess of curls and green eyes. Though, Mistress Maria had softer, gentler eyes. She had a pretty smile too.

Meanwhile, Claire's father looked nothing like how Ciel imagined him. He had short almost-white blonde hair and dark brown eyes. Though, he did look like the flamboyant type as Fae described. He had a mischievous glint in his eyes, and a childish grin.

Fae was right when she said Claire looked a lot happier when she was younger. Her big green eyes were full of curiosity, and her curly hair was tied up in twin pigtails. Her dress surprisingly wasn't black, but a nice shade of pale green. She was sitting in Lady Maria's lap, looking like she just got a piece of candy.

Ciel began to flip through the pages. First it showed the wedding between Maria and... Pierre. Claire's father was Pierre Benoit. They seemed like a happy couple. Both of them were smiling when they got together with their groomsmen and bridesmaids. After the wedding, pictures of a baby Claire were pasted all over the pages. Then it showed her growing up, from her first steps, first birthday, first ball to their moving to England. The little girl was smiling in every picture.

Suddenly the pictures started to change.

When Ciel turned the page next, Claire was with her mother and had a large bandage on her face, the same place where her scar was. She wasn't smiling. The earl started skimming through the pages faster, and as she grew up, she stopped smiling. Finally the pictures stopped abruptly on one page, and Ciel knew what had happened. Maria had died. It looked like she died around the time Claire was ten, since on of the last pictures was of her and her father standing in front of Big Ben.

Ciel was so busy looking through the pages, he didn't notice another presence in the room. A girl was standing in the doorway, a hateful look in her acid green eyes. She set her candle down carefully on one of the tables as to not disturb Ciel and stood up straight again.

"What the hell are you doing in here?"


	15. Chapter 15

p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Ciel sat down across from Claire, and the girl rested her head in her hand. Ciel shifted uncomfortably under her cold gaze, trying not to meet the girl's acid green eyes. A silence passed between them as Claire waited for Ciel to ask any questions. "Go on. Spit it out now; tomorrow's too late." The girl said in a harsh tone./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""I've wanted to ask- How did you get your scar?"/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Claire looked down, running a hand through her mess of curls. "When I was six, my parents and I went on a vacation back to France for a little while in the mountains. We were having a picnic there, and I happened to wander off into the woods nearby. There were a lot of predators in those woods, you see. I happened to come across a wild cat who also happened to be hungry at the time. I tried running back, but it scratched my face and I fell. My father came just in time to shoot it to death, before it killed me. The wound was too deep for the doctors to make sure there wasn't a scar."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Ciel was silent as he listened to Claire's story. It was a wonder she didn't get any other injuries./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Or so he thought./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""That scar isn't the only one I got from that wild cat." she said suddenly. Claire got up from her seat and walked around the desk. When she was all the way around, she sat and began to pull down her sock. Her entire right calf was marred with scars from bite marks and claws. "He managed to get my leg also."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Ciel's eye was wide with shock. It was almost too difficult to look at. Before Ciel could stare at it any longer, Claire pulled up her sock again and walked back to her seat. Her expression still hadn't changed./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Any other questions?" she asked as she sat down. Ciel thought about it for a moment. Did he really want to ask…/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""How did your mother die?"/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"If Claire felt any sadness within her, she didn't show it. "She died of a sickness after going to France for a small trip. I guess the statement 'Bad things happen to good people' is true. She died in the room you went in last night. I keep that room closed because it reminds me of her, so it's painful to look at."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Was she nice?"/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Incredibly so. She couldn't stand to see any sadness around the house at all. Or in England period. She did a lot of charity, and took in many orphans to work as servants here. Those include Fae, Edmund, and Rosalinde. Also a few others you haven't met yet."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""What's your father like? I've already heard about how flamboyant he is."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Claire laughed softly. "Yes, he is like that a lot. Though, he's also very sweet and kind, even though he runs a weapons company."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Where is he now?"/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Right now? He's currently in Japan discussing future weapons shipments with their military officials."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Does he leave often?" Ciel asked./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Yes, very much so. But he knows I can handle the manor by myself."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"A small silence passed between them, but it wasn't awkward like the last one. Claire seemed… relieved that she could finally tell someone about her experiences. And Ciel now understood why she was so angry the night before./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Oh, I almost forgot this-" Claire said suddenly. Ciel watched as she pulled out a drawer in her desk and take out two letters, waving them softly. "These arrived in the mail a few days ago. They're invitations to a Masquerade ball at a nobleman's manor. He would like both of us to attend." Ciel took his invitation when Claire handed it to him. He opened it up and read carefully. "'You may not attend if you do not have a mask'… But I don't have one.."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Claire then pulled out two masks, blue and green, from another drawer with a smirk on her face. "I take after my dad, you know."/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""I'm beginning to notice…" Ciel answered./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"Claire laughed and stood up, pointing dramatically at Ciel. "Ha ha yes! If you think I'm dramatic now, you should see us when we're together!"/span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""/spanspan style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;"I don't think I want too…/spanspan style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;"" Ciel whispered under his breath./span/p  
p style="line-height: 24.4799995422363px; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.3999996185303px; background-color: #fefefe;"span style="line-height: 1.7em; color: #000000; font-family: arial; font-size: 15px;""Anyway~" the girl started, walking over to the door, "I'll see you at the ball tomorrow, Lord Phantomhive.." And with an evil laugh and smirk on her face, she quietly closed the door./span/p 


	16. Chapter 16

"Dammit, why do we have to go to this stupid ball anyway? What if she shows up?" Ciel asked grumpily as Sebastian dressed him. The boy was wearing a black suit with blue roses placed neatly in his breast pocket and silver trim. His pants wear tucked into high black boots, but surprisingly, he didn't have his eyepatch on.

"I'm sure she won't show up. Besides, Claire will be there. She'll protect you from the Raven." Sebastian answered when he finished dressing the young earl. The butler stood straight, and Ciel looked at himself in the mirror. He didn't look that bad. The mask fit perfectly over his face, one eye covered in black cloth to hide the contract Ciel. Claire must have exclusively ordered that for him. Silver and black beading wound around the eyes, creating delicate patterns to accent his face.

Ciel stared for a while before saying, "Not bad." He then walked over to the door, which Sebastian opened for him. Then, they walked down the hallway to the main hall to wait for Claire. Edmund was already there. "Is she ready yet?" Ciel asked. "Not quite." The footman replied.

The earl and butler didn't say anything after that, and sat in an uncomfortable silence with the other male in the room. The clock minute seemed like hours, and the raven-haired girl still hadn't come down.

When Ciel was almost ready to stomp up the stairs and yell at Claire to come down, he heard a few voices from the right wing. Soon, Claire and Fae rounded the corner, and Claire was in her full gown.

She was wearing an off-the-shoulder gown which was a dark emerald green. Intricate beading was on the bodice and part of the off shoulder sleeve, making them glitter in the warm light of the chandelier. Her black curly hair was tied in a high bun with green ribbon, and she wore a black choker. Her mask was the same green as her dress with similar beading to that of Ciel's mask.

Claire walked down the stairs carefully, trying not to trip on her skirt. When she reached the bottom, she twirled, her skirts fanning out before her. "What do you think?" She asked, a small smirk on her face.

Ciel didn't even realize he had a pink tint to his cheeks. "You-... You, um,... You look good," he stuttered out. Claire's smirk widened slightly. "Thank you."

"Shall we be off?" Sebastian asked. Claire and Ciel both nodded. The group along with Fae and Edmund walked out to the carriage waiting for them. They piled in, Claire, Ciel and Sebastian on one side, Fae and Edmund on the other.

The sky was an inky black by the time they arrived at the mansion. They could see other people wearing elaborate masks entering through the front door. The women wore beautiful dresses in all shades of colors, and the men wore fanciful black suits with silk top hats. Chatter and music could be heard from inside the brightly lit house.

Sebastian, Edmund, and Fae were the first to get out, then Ciel and Claire. "Shall we?" Ciel asked. "Of course." Claire replied. She took his arm and they both walked up the stairs, the three servants staying at the carriage.

"Well, what do we have here~?" a person said, looking down at the two nobles as they walked inside. Grell laughed quietly, crouching in a lower position. "So the little brat finally got himself a nice girl. Is Sebas-chan nearby~?!" The redheaded reaper looked around quickly, finally spotting the demon chatting with the Benoit servants. "Ah~! There he is!" he exclaimed, almost ready to jump and glomp Sebastian. "No- no- no- I need to stay focused on my job. I can't afford to get probation again…. Let's see-" Grell pulled out his list, checking over which souls he had to reap. "Ah, it's those two." He said. "ALRIGHT!" he yelled out, striking his signature pose, "I"LL DEFINITELY GET THEM TONIGHT!- oh shit.." he quickly covered his mouth and sunk beneath the small wall on the roof.

"What's wrong, Blackie?" Fae asked when Sebastian looked up. "I thought I heard something… Someone I really don't like.." He said, shivering. The lady's maid snickered quietly at the expression Sebastian had on his face.

Meanwhile, Claire and Ciel were standing off to the side of the ballroom, chatting quietly with each other. They watched as other nobles danced gracefully to the ballroom music, and Claire glanced over to Ciel. "Would you like to dance?" Ciel's eye widened and he stuttered out, "What?!" Claire laughed and grabbed his hand. "Come on; it'll be fun!" She led the reluctant boy to the dancefloor and turned to face him.

"Do you know how to dance, correct?"

"I'm not very good, though."

"Then I can teach you."

"Wait no-"

But Claire had already taken his hand; she placed it on her waist as she put her hand on his shoulder. Then, she took his other hand. "This is the proper position for dancing. This will probably be easy since smaller partners are easier to dance with. "I've already learned that…." the earl whispered under his breath.

Claire looked over to the musicians and nodded softly; they began to play a soft and slow tune for them. "Put your left foot forward." Claire whispered to Ciel. Ciel stumbled slightly when he did so, but Claire quickly corrected him. "Good, now slide to the right." she instructed. They both moved at the same time, Ciel being a little more gracefully this time. "Put your right foot behind you now." Ciel moved back, and Claire smiled. "Now go back to your first position." They moved back to the position. "Already, now rinse and repeat."

They continued dancing until the song ended. And Ciel only stepped on Claire's foot once! At the end of the song, Claire twirled gracefully and curtsied to Ciel. The earl bowed back at her, and they walked back over to the sidelines.

"You're not bad of a dancer- if you practice, of course," Claire said when they got off the dancefloor. Ciel glared slightly at her before sighing. "I'm going to go get drink," the lady said, "Would you like one?" "Sure, I'll take one." Claire nodded and smiled before excusing herself. Ciel watched as she made her way through the crowd until she was out of sight.

The earl walked over slowly to the balcony and stepped outside. A cold night breeze floated through the balcony area, rustling Ciel's hair. He gazed up at the silver moon in the sky, and watched as a bird flew in and out of the moonlight. Loud chatter and music still came from the ballroom, but when Ciel looked back, Claire still hadn't come back.

Just as he was about to go look for her, a warning bell went off in his head. Something… wasn't right here. When he looked up, he saw a black figure crouched on the floor. Only seconds later, she jumped from the roof and moved to kick Ciel. Her foot collided with his jaw, and he was set over the railing. Luckily, it wasn't that far of a fall, so it wouldn't kill him. But it did hurt like hell.

The Raven jumped from the railing also, landing gracefully near Ciel. The earl massaged his jaw, while the girl stood up straight. She pulled a sword out and pointed it at Ciel. When Ciel could see clearly enough, all he could see was the tip of silver and the Raven cold green gaze.

"Ready to meet your fate, Phantomhive?"


	17. Chapter 17

_"__Ready to meet your fate, Phantomhive?"_

Ciel snapped out of his daze and looked up slowly at the Raven. This was actually the first time he got a good look at her, besides her eyes of course. The Raven wasn't that tall. Shorter than Ciel probably. Though, it looked like she had some muscle to her. Her hair was tied back, so Ciel couldn't see what color or style it was. But her eyes. Yes, he was right when he said they looked exactly like Claire's. The same shape, the same color- Everything was the same.

The girl continued pointing her sword at Ciel, a dark look on her face. "Hmmm…" she said quietly. Ciel didn't have enough time to react before the Raven swiping at his face, knocking the mask off and revealing his eye. "_A demon contractor… Just as I thought."_ she said in French. A smirk formed on her lips. "_That's cheating, you know."_

And suddenly, Ciel was angry. How dare this girl, too cowardly to show her own face, who dares try to kill him without proper details of his supposed 'crime,' say that Ciel was cheating at his own game?! "Like you're one who talk!" he yelled, "How many people have you cheated to get where you are now?!" The Raven's expression hardened and she backhanded Ciel across the face. When Ciel looked back at her, she had gotten incredibly close, so close their noses almost touched. "_Don't think for a second you know _anything_ about me!" _she hissed. "And you think you know me?!" the earl retorted.

"_I know you burned down that mansion a few months ago! You were assigned to save the children, but you sent them to a fiery grave instead!"_

"They all turned braindead in that mansion! It was the kindest thing! And you didn't even see what was in there!"

"_You were meant to follow orders, something you don't seem capable of doing in that case. The queen needs soldiers, not vigilantes!"_

"So you're going to kill me because I didn't?!"

"_Once nobles rebel once they'll want to do it again_." Her voice turned to a harsh, yet quieter tone. "_I've seen what becomes of it. The other Ravens have seen what becomes of it. We were - no, we ARE - meant to stop it."_

They locked eyes with each other, blue clashing with green. 'Sebastian.. come,' Ciel thought, calling out to the demon butler with his mind. If Sebastian got the message, Ciel would've do anything to stall her then. So, he did stupidest thing he could think of at the moment.

He jumped her.

The Raven wasn't expecting this at all, so when he pounced, she fell back in shock. The earl pulled out his gun quickly and aimed right at the Raven, but she was quick. Just before Ciel shot, she rolled to the side, the bullet grazing her iron mask. It cracked slightly, and she knew it. Before it could fully come off, she held it in place with one hand and swiped at Ciel with her sword. The boy fell back, the gun knocked out of his hand.

She started towards him, but he kicked her legs out from under her. Dropping her sword, she grasped her mask tightly, so it wouldn't fall off. When Ciel tried to go for his gun, the girl grabbed his ankle and pulled his back harshly. She_was_ strong! Ciel turned to try and punch her in the face, but before he could, her foot connected with his chest and he skidded back.

He looked up to see the Raven towering over him, her face filled with rage. "You have become quite the problem, _Ciel Phantomhive_," she said darkly, only this time in English. The voice sounded familiar…

"Young Master!"

Ciel and Raven turned to see Sebastian heading right for them, Fae and Edmund not far behind. The butler pulled out a kitchen knife and threw it at the girl dressed in black. It moved so fast she didn't have enough time to deflect it, and Sebastian's knife hit her mask with a loud clang. The knife stunned her so much she collapsed on the ground, her hood falling away to reveal long black curls on hair. They were thick enough that the earl still couldn't see her face.

Meanwhile, Grell watched the scene unfold from up on the roof. "Alright, only a few minutes to go- Ah, there's Sebas-chan!" He squealed like a fangirl when he saw the demon. His red hair spun out as he twirled with absolute delight. "Maybe he'll be the one to kill them~! What a wonderful way to go!" he exclaimed, and hide back in his spot to see what happens.

Sebastian ran up next to Ciel, and Fae and Edmund walked over to the Raven. "Black curls… It can't be-" Ciel started. Fae helped the Raven up slowly, and the mask clattered to the ground, broken into three pieces. The Raven looked up darkly, a smirk tugging at her lips. Ciel stared in utter shock at who was standing before him.

It was Claire Benoit, once his protector, now his assassin.


	18. Chapter 18

"I'm quite shocked, actually. I'd thought you'd at least guessed it by now." Claire said, after a moment of silence passed over the five. Fae and Edmund stood behind Claire, holding onto her arms. She was still dazed from Sebastian's knife, and couldn't stand up correctly just yet. "I think I always knew, but I ignored it." Ciel said, a cool tone in his voice. Claire shrugged and bent down to pick up her sword. Though, she didn't lunge once she had it in her hand. Sebastian stood on guard in case she tried anything. "Why haven't you killed me yet, anyway?" the earl asked.

"Well, I thought I'd give you an explanation on why I 'protected' you before I killed you."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, quite. And if you try to run, or if you attack- I _will_ murder you."

Ciel stayed silent for a few moments, and Claire took it as he wouldn't try anything. "It was actually a very simple idea at first- get into the mansion, find the boy, and kill him. But then I happened to notice your servants. I had Fae watch the mansion the night you were gone, and she saw your little gardener out there. Let's just say she didn't like what she saw. So, we had to think of something different. I came up with the idea of getting a document from the Queen assigning me to guard you for a while, and get you to trust me enough to see me as not a threat. Then, I would kill you."

"But we were getting nowhere. So, we decided to take a step further. Say… the Raven unexpectedly attack the mansion and I had to stop her? That would probably gain at least a little trust from you, so we decided to do just that. Fae was the Raven that day."

Ciel's eyes widened slightly, and his expression hardened. "So everything you did was just a trick?"

"That's one way of putting it." Claire said, rolling her eyes. "I have a job, Lord Phantomhive. One that needs to be completely without any mistakes." Claire's expression turned dark, darker than Ciel had ever seen. This was ten times worse than the night he snuck into Maria's room. "However, you were my _only _mistake. A mistake I need to fix right now!"

And with that Claire brought her sword up and lunged at Ciel. Sebastian instinctively moved to guard his master, but Edmund got in the way. The boy swiftly punched Sebastian in the jaw with such a force, the demon stumbled back. "What the hell-" he began. "Do ya like it, Blackie?" Fae said, walking towards him at a leisurely pace, "Specially engineered soldiers, we are! Similar to that of your little gardener, Finny. Different scientist though- Which is why he didn't get the side effect."

That's when it finally hit Ciel and Sebastian. "Your eyes... The electric blue is a side effect?!" the butler said. Edmund and Fae nodded, while Claire smirked. She had her sword pointed at Ciel's throat, and the boy didn't move an inch. "That was why they were left on the streets to die. They were considered failed experiments."

"You know what? I think this will be quite the interesting battle. A demon versus two genetically enhanced twins. A noble versus a noble." Claire said, a twisted smirk on her face. She glanced over at Ciel before reaching in her cloak. The cloak fell off, and she brought out another sword. She tossed it to Ciel, which he took by surprise. "I can't defeat the villainous noble without proper honor, now can I?"

Ciel held the sword in his hands for a few moments, glaring harshly at Claire. "You're sick." Claire's smirk only widened slightly, though her eyes held something else. "I get that a lot." And with that Claire crashed her sword down on Ciel's and the twins attacked Sebastian.

Sebastian brought out more kitchen knife from his sleeves, and threw them at the twins. Fae quickly slid underneath, a few just grazing her nose, and stood up again. The girl aimed a quick swipe with her nails at Sebastian's face, creating a few scratch marks. But the butler then kicked her right in the stomach, while bending backwards to block Edmund's attack. The boy had tried to sneak up on him and punch him from behind, but Sebastian could hear him coming. Sebastian could see Fae crouched down and bring her leg in an arch to trip Sebastian. The butler quickly jumped and roundhouse-kicked both of them in the face.

Meanwhile, Claire and Ciel were fighting it out near the wall of the mansion. Ciel underestimated Claire's strength, realizing now she had been going easy on him in their first fight; now that Claire was set on killing him, she wasn't holding back. She crashed her sword against his, and it was all he could do to deflect her attacks. "Take one step back and another to the right! Just like dancing, Ciel!" the girl taunted, bring her sword in a deadly ark. And then Ciel saw an opening. If he could just duck and kick her legs out from under her, he would have enough time to grab the sword out of Claire's hands.

"Stop this at once!" a familiar voice shouted near them.

Claire and Ciel turned, their swords locked, to see Charles Grey standing nearby, a gun trained on the both of them. Claire slowly backed off, letting her sword arm drop to her side. "What the hell are you doing here?" she asked, her voice hoarse. "Doing the job you couldn't complete." The earl said, a small smirk forming on his face.

"The queen is tired of waiting, Claire. And since we can't exactly let you loose with so much information about the secrets of the English government, I'm afraid she has asked me to kill both you and Earl Phantomhive!"


	19. Chapter 19

Claire and Ciel were shocked into silent, and the boy nearly dropped his sword. Both were still disheveled from the fight; Claire's hair was in tangled knots, her dress dirty with mud, and luckily for Ciel, his ruffled hair covered the contracted stood to the side along with Fae and Edmund. He had his fist positioned to punch Edmund, and Fae had her arm wrapped around Sebastian with a knife in her hand. But they were stunned by hearing Charles so the blows never came.

"What is the meaning of this?" Claire said, walking away from Ciel to Charles Grey. "What do you mean you shall kill us?! The only one who is going to die is him!" Claire pointed her sword at Ciel, but the boy noticed something in her eyes. Was that…. fear? He didn't have time to check before she turned back to Charles. "I don't care if Queen Victoria's tired of waiting; I shall finish what I started! And you won't get in my way-"

"Hey, what about me here? I'm not particularly excited about being killed!"

"You're my mission, and I intend to end it!" Claire said, her body trembling.

Ciel stared at Claire carefully. "May I see you alone for a moment, Claire?" he asked, softening his tone. The girl paused for a minute, thinking about his request. Finally, she exhaled and walked over to him. Ciel grabbed Claire's shoulder and hissed in French, "_Why are you doing this_?" Claire glanced at Charles before moving so that he couldn't see her. Almost immediately her expression hardened as she looked up at Ciel. "_I don't have a choice! If I don't complete my mission, I'll be killed, my father and all the servants too! Do you really want that many people to die-"_

_"__There has to be a way to negotiate."_

_"__I don't think there'll be any negotiating-"_

"Since you two seem to be having a hard time deciding what to do, let's make a deal."

Claire shut her mouth when Charles interrupted her. Her chest heaved up and down as she thought about what he said. Ciel was watching the gears turn in Claire's head, calculating the best possible outcome. Charles had a smirk on his face still, like he already knew her answer. "What is your deal?" Claire asked carefully, standing up straighter. Ciel grabbed Claire's arm and opened his mouth to stop her, but Charles was already talking, "You kill the boy, and I will ask the queen to forgive your incompetence." The girl's expression turned sour and she snarled, "You dare call me incompete-" Fae suddenly interrupted, "Just do it, Claire!"

Claire looked over at her lady's maid. Fae nodded slightly, a sign that Claire should go along with the deal. Though the girl was still hesitant. And that confused Ciel. The lady seemed so set on killing him before, what was stopping her now? Charles noticed the silent passover between the lady and maid and said, "Shall I show you what happens if you do not agree?" And nobody had time to react before Charles clicked the safety on his gun and shot Fae and Edmund right in the head. Sebastian and Ciel stood in shock as the two bodies fell, a look of horror on their faces. Sebastian knelt down to see if they were alive somehow, but there was no sign of life in either of them.

"Right on schedule," Grell said, putting away his pocket watch.

Then Claire screamed. It was a scream filled with heartbreak and anguish, and when Ciel looked over, she had tears in her eyes. The girl fell to her knees, holding her head in her hands as she sobbed her heart out for her two best friends. It was too painful to watch, so Ciel looked away.

"Do you accept the deal or not?" Charles asked while the girl was crying. And suddenly, Claire stopped. Ciel looked to see her shoulders weren't quaking, no tears fell from her eyes. He watched as she stood slowly, the grip on her sword strong. She turned to face Charles, a look of pure hatred on her tear-stained face. Charles saw readiness in her eyes. Readiness to kill. But who is that readiness for?

Ciel watched as Claire then turned to face him. She wore the same hatred on her face as when she was looking at Charles, but he saw her make a small movement with her hand. Sign language. She was saying "run." But why? It was her mission to kill him, so why didn't she want to complete it? Ciel then made the movement for "why?" Claire hardened her gaze and slowly shook her head.

There wasn't any more time for talking. "Charles Grey," Claire said, her voice hoarse from crying, "Despite what you have down this night, which you will pay for even if I die for it, I accept your deal."


	20. Chapter 20

Charles smirked and shrugged at her answer. "If that is your decision, Lady Claire. You have one hour to complete your mission." Charles pulled out his pocket watch to time it, and Claire turned back to face Ciel. Her face was a mask of no emotion as she walked nearer to him slowly, her sword dangling from her hand. Ciel gripped his sword tighter, a cold stare fixed on the Raven.

Meanwhile, with the twins dead, Sebastian could easily end the Raven and Ciel would be safe. He was a demon after all, and that girl was just a small mortal with a big ego and reputation. In fact, he was starting towards her when Ciel noticed him. "Sebastian, do not interfere." the boy growled. The butler was almost dumbfounded. Usually, Ciel would ask for Sebastian's help, but this time? No, he needed to do this on his own. "But, young master-" "That's an order!" Ciel barked back. Sebastian quickly shut his mouth, a sour look on his face as he backed off.

"Claire… don't do this.." the boy tried to reason with the girl, but she wasn't listening. He quickly dodged as Claire swiped at his chest. She looked bitterly disappointed; the girl then walked after Ciel again, aiming for his throat. Ciel brought his sword up and it clashed with hers, nearly sending it out of her hands. Claire's blank expression turned serious as she swiped at him again only quicker than before. As Ciel kept blocking or dodging her attacks, they got more frenzied and wild, her anger growing.

Ciel ducked swiftly when Claire swiped in a deadly arc. He then tackled the girl to the ground; Claire's eyes widened and she yelled in anger. Ciel struggled with her as she tried to slash at him with her sword but he held her arm at bay. "Let me go!" Claire screamed, "Let me go-" "Think about what you're doing!" Ciel yelled above her, making her stop. She stared at him with wide eyes filled with shock and anger. Ciel noticed her eyes were filled with small tears, almost threatening to spill over, but then she pushed harshly on him, knocking him off of her. Ciel groaned, laying there as Claire got up slowly. "Stand up and face me, Phantomhive." she said darkly. Ciel only coughed, rolling on his side; this made Claire angrier. "Get up, dammit!" She said louder.

Ciel mustered up what energy he had left and got to his knees. He could see Claire's sword dangling somewhere above his head, but he stood anyway. He raised his sword to strike, and it was knocked out of his hand almost immediately. The girl raised her foot and kicked Ciel square in the chest, sending him flying backwards. He landed with a hard thud on the ground, and the earl felt a sharp pain in the back of his head, making him dizzy.

Somehow, the earl could make out the hazy figure of Claire as she strode towards him, her sword gleaming in the moonlight. She knelt closer to Ciel's face, and he could finally make out her features. Her face was contorted in anger, and her eyes seeming darker and colder than normal. She brought up her sword so that it was positioned directly over Ciel's chest. "Don't do this, Claire.." Ciel said, still trying to reason with the girl. He didn't know if she heard him or not; he could barely hear himself anyway. The hand on the sword began shaking violently, and Claire had a determined look on her face. She raised her sword higher, ready to swing. Sebastian knew this was the time to act, despite what Ciel ordered. And right as Claire swung, he ran towards them rapidly, and Ciel shut his eyes and braced himself for the pain surely to come.

But he felt... nothing?

The earl felt drops of water fall on his face and hair brush his cheek. Slowly, he opened his eyes to see Claire's sword was buried in the ground near his head, and the girl had head down, her shoulders shaking. Sebastian was standing nearby, his hand raised as if he were about to attack Claire, and his demon fangs showing; his eyes glowed a demonic pink also.

When the lady looked up, she was crying again. "I-... I can't… I c-can't do it…" she stuttered, tears falling from her eyes again. She slowly let go of her sword and sat back, covering her face with her hands. Ciel propped himself up with his elbows and stared confused as the girl shook violently. "I'm not going to kill him!" she said firmly, pulling her hands from her face. "I refuse!" "Claire.." Ciel said quietly, and she looked over at him. Grinning slightly, she shrugged and said, "I guess I'm not a real Raven, after all."

Meanwhile, Charles frowned, a dark look crossing his face. "That's quite unfortunate, Lady Claire…" he said, slowly pulling out his gun. "You would've been one of the best Ravens in history." Claire's back was facing him, so the girl couldn't see when he brought up the gun and pointed it at her temple.

But Ciel did.

"Watch out!" he yelled, holding the back of her head and pulling down to his chest. It made sure she didn't get shot in the head, but even so, the bullet lodged itself in the next best place: her spine. Ciel watched in horror as blood splurted out of the bulletwound, a few drops landing on his face, and Claire's eyes widen in shock.

"Sorry, Ciel…" she said, before closing her eyes and falling limply in his arms.


	21. Chapter 21

_It's been three weeks since Charles Grey shot Claire, and she somehow managed to survive after being taken to the hospital. But now, she is paralyzed from the small of her back and down. Ciel had managed to persuade the Queen not to have her or him murdered, saying it was all a misunderstanding and they both had done nothing wrong. The Queen agreed; though Claire's duties as the Queen's Raven had been revoked, since Claire was now in a wheelchair. Today was the day The Queen would announce that Claire would no longer be the Queen's Raven, or that anyone else will. The reign of the Raven was over._

Ciel walked down the hallway of the palace calmly, wearing his most formal attire. He was on his way to Claire's room, where the girl was waiting to be escorted to the grand ballroom. Sebastian was right behind him, and they soon came upon the door to Claire's guest room. They could hear nothing on the other side, and for a second Ciel was worried she wasn't in there. That girl was always making some kind of noise.

When he opened the door, Claire was thankfully there. She sat quietly in her wheelchair looking out the window, her eyes seeming far away, and for once, she was completely silent.

Claire had been put into a pale green dress, with sleeves that went from her shoulders to her elbow, then fell into delicate tulle layers to her hands. The skirt was laced with intricate clear and silver beading, along with the bodice. In Claire's black hair was a green flower, and pearls that wrapped around it, and her hair was tied in an intricate bun. For once, Claire was wearing something that wasn't black. Or any other dark color. She looked.. happier. The innocence that Sebastian had described as once buried underneath layers of darkness was finally showing itself.

Claire didn't turn around when Ciel and Sebastian entered, but she said, "It feels odd.. not being able to walk. It's like a large part of what makes you human is missing." Ciel said nothing, but walked slowly over to her. Claire looked up at him from where she was sitting, and gave him a half-grin. "You should be grateful you can still walk." Ciel stared at her for a moment, before closing his eyes, "And you should be grateful you had that privilege most of your life." Claire laughed softly, wheeling herself to face Ciel. "I guess, after the ceremony... this is goodbye." Ciel opened his eyes again to look at her. "I'm sure we'll see each other again, someday."

Claire paused, before reaching up and taking his hand. "Thank you.."

"For what?"

"For everything."

Ciel paused, before saying, "And thank you."

"For what?"

"For not killing me."

Claire laughed, and Ciel managed a small smile. They stayed in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, before Claire slowly began to reach up. Ciel was perfectly still as Claire carefully took off his eyepatch. She looked curiously into his contracted eye, her own eyes gleaming with what seemed to be sadness. Ciel continued to stare back at her, a little uncomfortable with the eyepatch off. "So beautiful… yet it will only bring pain," Claire whispered. She reached up again and tied the eyepatch back, and she gave Ciel a warm smile. "Enjoy your life. Live while you still have the chance."

Sebastian stepped quietly into the room. "It's time to go, my lord." Ciel moved behind her and carefully wheeled her around, before leading her out the hall. "C'mon, You've still got one last mission." Claire glanced up at him. "One last mission… yes.."

"I have gathered you all today to discuss an important matter." The Queen stated to the nobles gathered in the great hall. Claire and Ciel were standing behind her, and people kept glancing at Claire. "I believe that all of you have heard of the infamous Queen's Raven." Any eyes that weren't on the girl were on her now. Claire sat a little taller. "The girl next to me was the Queen's Raven. She has been revoked of her position as the Raven, due to her new… disability. There shall also be no more Ravens for the rest of my reign." The two nobles could hear many audible sighs of relief, and could see the thankful expressions - some still angry though - on everyone's faces. "Now, I know some of you have lost loved ones to the Raven, and you most likely will want revenge." Queen Victoria motioned to Claire. "But anyone who harms this girl will be arrested for treason against the Crown by my Guard Dog, and will be executed. If I find out any of you try to murder my Raven, you will have to answer to me." A few whispers traveled around the room, but most people remained silent. The Queen looked over the crowd, before lowering her hand. "That is all. You may go."

Claire and Ciel watched as the people processed out of the hall, some giving them a few last glances. One young girl walked up to Claire as her mother was talking with another noble. "When I grow up, I wanna be just like you!" she said, before running back to her mother. Claire opened her mouth as if to reply, but she shut it as the girl ran away. "I think she wants to be brave like you.. not a murderer." Ciel commented. Claire sighed. "I suppose you are right."

Claire wheeled herself so she could face Ciel. "I have something to tell you. But don't tell anyone else." She motioned for him to bend over. When he did, she leaned up and whispered in his ear. Ciel's eyes widened slightly, before he smirked. "Yes, that is quite true."

Rosalinde and Joyce walked up so they were standing next to Claire. Joyce grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and looked over at Ciel. "Thank you… for saving her." Ciel nodded to her politely, and Rosalinde whispered, "Mr. Sebastian….?" "Yes, Rosa?" he answered. The girl smiled when she heard his voice. "You're a very brave butler."

Claire looked at Ciel for the last time and smiled. It wasn't like one of her small ones, or the kind of smirk she used at her stay at the mansion. No, this was a genuine smile, warm and beautiful. "Goodbye, Ciel," she said as Joyce slowly wheeled her away. Ciel watched her go. "Goodbye… Claire."


	22. Epilogue

Ciel sat quietly at his desk, reading the few letters he received while he was gone. It was almost sunset, a few hours after the announcement at the palace. Claire had left to go back to her mansion, and Ciel went back to his own. It felt odd to be back there. He had stayed at Claire's so long it seemed more like home. But here he was, back at his own mansion.

Sebastian knocked on the door, getting Ciel's attention. "Enter." The butler opened the door and he had a letter in his hand. "You have another mission from the Queen." Ciel looked up and took the letter. Apparently, he had to go to Germany to see about strange occurrences about werewolves. Ciel sighed. "Alright, it would be best to leave now." Sebastian nodded. "I'll prepare a carriage immediately."

Ciel walked outside with Sebastian, the carriage waiting for them in the front. The servants were lined up outside. "Take care of the mansion while we're gone." Sebastian said. The three Phantomhive servants saluted him, saying "Yes sir!' The head butler nodded and opened the door for Ciel. They both got in, and the carriage set off to Greenwich.

While they were riding near the forest, Ciel noticed something out the window. A small black figure was hiding behind the trees. He couldn't make it out, that is, until a person moved into view. It was a girl, with black curly hair and acid green eyes, standing upright and tall. Ciel smirked, seeing as she was wearing her normal obsidian black dress. 'That's the Claire, I know,' Ciel thought. The lady smiled at him, before yelling out something in French. Ciel knew what it was immediately. It was the same thing she whispered to him at the announcement.

_"__The Raven never dies."_


End file.
